Adjustable clasp



jm., 4, WU H. vlzNER 2,495,667

ADJUSTABLE CLASP Filed Feb. 7, 1947 INVENTOR. 73- ,He/man 773571274 atentedl Jari.I 24, 1950 ADJUSTABLE 'WASP 'Herman Vianen', New York! N. assigner to D. Ornstein & Sons Corp., a corporation of New York Application February 7, 1.947, erial'hln. 73h23.@

(Cl. 24e-20.69

'l-Claim. l

This invention relates to fastening devices and, more partiularly, to adjustable clasps that neorporate several new and novel features.

jMy principal objective was` to design a clasp that .could be utilised as fastening means on Clothing, watch bands, belts r on any other manufaetured artieiles where buekles or similar devices are used. The result `of this Objective le my present invention whieh comprises an ed- Justa'ble .clasp that vfeatures earn operating locking means.

A further advantage is thatrny deviee is Simple in construction, inexpensive to produce, and has a `ininimuin of parts.. Each of the three members comprising the clasp is capable of 'beine .Stamped and shaped 4from single v,nieces .of .metal whieh .can then be easily andeuiokly assembled together to .form a clasp.

Another feature .is vthat the olasp capable 4of beine adjusted `to the desired .length .and then, by slight movement of the loelrine membeh the .eo-acting parts of the clasp are .firmly and securely 4locked together. Through the functioning of the cam locking means, an elective locking Yen.inigernent is secured which prevents .any slippage and .maintains ,the .clasp lits seleeted insi- .tion A slight movement of the'loehine earn in the opposite ldire@tion assures a .uniek and ready release with@4 minimum of effort.

Further advantages .and uniduefeatnres ef my device will be apparent as .I proeeed 'with the ilesriptiOn.

Figure 1 shows .a plan View .of .the `pre.ferrea form .of my `device in locked position;

Fig. 2 shows a view on line '2--2 of Fig.. fl;

Fig. =shows a View on 'line 3e3 .of jFig, 12 3 Fie.- 4 shows a View similar to IFig. .2 with the tongue disengaged from the locking member;

Fig. Y5 y,sl-lows a `plan view of the various parts of the clasp before being assembled;

Fig. 6 shows fa `view on line Gees-6 of Fig. 5;

Fig- 'l shows a plan view of .a .modified vferm of my invention;

Fig. 8 shows a view on line 8--8 of Fig. "7;

Fig. 9 shows -a v-ie-w ron line 9--9 of Fig. 10;

Fig. l0 shows a plan view, partially insetipn, `of another modication of my invention; and

Fig. 1,1 shows a 'partial perspective yiewenf the locking means -of the device shown in Figs. 9 and 10.

In Figures 1 through 6, I have shown the preferred form of my adjustable clasp A which can be manufactured from lightweight metal or any other material that will adequately serve 2 the purpose. Basically, the clasp is composedof three main parts, namely, a tongue 20, a locking member 3l; `and a gripping@meinber M.

Tongue 20 ,com-prises a yllat piece of metal 2| with a loop I22 at one end to which an loe se- .oiired a strap 23 or other material that te be iastened. The enter portion ef the tongue 2U equipped with a plurality o f corrugations with alternate ridges and grooves Z5 extend-ing above and 'bellow the surface of the ltongue 2-0. gilthpugh vhave speeified oorrugations, it is "ed that the same effeet might be secured by alternately welding einen pieces of wire Yto both sides v off the tongue 20 which would serve .thesarnennrleese- The looking member. also serves as e housing .for the .elasp and its wells .enelose the other two .members l.on three sides2 terin-inemne' 0.1.1 the bet- ,torn in two flanges el which support the gripping member 4 1). The top .suriae 35 of the locking niemeer an `extension which is lnent beek nnen .itself in the shape oi U to form e loep `3.3. This extension extends ins-ide of the Alooking member and .constitutes :the .loeking plate l32.

".Ihe plate 32 .is 'inelined slightly toward the top surfaee ,35 leaving a .sneee 34 between the :plete .3 2 and .the top :.surfaee e5- "ihe plate'e ner- .row at the :loop 33 so that it willibe free to .move between the langes .4t of the grinning member et.. The maior nortion of the plate -32 widens out a snort eistanee .horn the .loep .3S so that its .sides extend par Ile; .o the sides .of tneiloekine'member .3.0 and have .sufilelent elearenee from the inner .thesripnine member 4t to allow .for unnbstrnetedinovernent.- The gripping member .4D een he .mede of e .single .strip Qfinetal whieh .is bent 'beek neon .itself approximately .midway its length inthe :form of U with innper and lower gripping plates 4] and 42', resvpetiveiy. The resultant loon el .be .utilised to atteeh .a strap or other material .to be .fastenedeentrall .Portion yof ...the ,lower grinning plate 4Z eeln'pneel with e plurality of .eorrneations @similar to the tensile .29., The upper grinrinenletell isalso equipped with rugatidns 4.8.. The outside edges of the .lower gripping plate e? are-bent upward at right angles ,to ,form .sides ill .enel ten flanges 145. sinf- .neient space allowed between tnenenges 4 5 for the unobstructed movement of the looking plate 32. Positioned on each of the flanges 45 near the open end of the gripping member 40 are downward extending cams 4B.

To operate the clasp, the locking member 30 and gripping member 40 are assembled as shown in Fig. 4 so that the plate 32 rides above the corrugations 48 of the upper gripping plate 41. The tongue 28 is then inserted between the upper gripping plate 41 and the lower gripping plate 42 of the gripping member 40. The upper 41 and lower 42 gripping plates are held close together by spring tension with the result that when the tongue 2U is inserted between them the spring tension of the plates 41 and 42 is sufficient to hold the tongue 20 at the desired adjustment until the locking member 30 is operated. The locking member 30 is then moved a short distance in the direction of the strap v23 which will force the plate 32 beneath the cams 46. This will cause the corrugations 48 and 43 of the upper and lower gripping plates 41 and 42 to co-act withthe corrugations of the tongue 20 resulting in the tongue being firmly gripped from both sides making a secure locking engagement. To release the tongue 28, it is merely necessary to slide the locking member 38 toward strap 49 which will result in the plate 32 becoming disengaged from the cam 46. This will allow the upper 41 and lower 42 gripping plates to move apart, enabling the tongue 20 to be withdrawn.

In Figures '1 and 8 I have shown a further modication of my device which, with few exceptions, functions in the same manner as the preferred form previously described. The modified clasp B has a tongue member 50 with corrugations 5| and a locking member 55 with a plate 56. Both the tongue 59 and the locking member 55 are similar in construction and function to those described in clasp A. The gripping member 60 in clasp B has only one gripping plate 6| which is equipped with corrugations 82 and which is located at the bottom of the gripping member 60. 'Ihe operation of the clasp B is the same as that previously described so that when locking member 55 is moved toward the loop 52, the plate 56, in sliding under the cam 63, forces the corrugations of the tongue 59 and gripping plate 5| into locking engagement. A movement of the plate 56 in the opposite direction releases the tongue 50 enabling it to be withdrawn. This modication has the additional feature of greater range of adjustment in that the tongue D may slide all the Way through the opening between the plate 53 and the gripping plate El as its movement is not restricted as in the case of clasp A which has loop 4 I.

Figures 8 to 10 illustrate another modification which functionsv on the same principle as clasp A andB but incorporates a slightly different construction. Clasp C vhas a tongue member 10 which is composed of a iiat piece of metal with opposite edges 1| and 12 being serrated in a sawtooth manner. One end of the tongue 10 is adaptedy to be inserted into the gripping member `and the opposite end is equipped with a loop 13 for attachment to a strap or other article. The gripping member 88 has a base plate 8| with opposite edges being bent upward and over to form channels 82 in which the locking rod 93 is positioned. At approximately the center of the member 88, on opposite sides, an additional portion of the edges of base plate 8| are bent downward again so that they are flush with the base plate 8| forming arms 83. Positioned near one end of each arm 83 is a projection 84 which is adapted to engage in the notches of the serrated edges 1| and 12 of the tongue 10.

The locking member 90 is comprised of a single metal plate 9| with opposite edges shaped around and underneath the gripping member to form a housing and furnish support for the gripping member. One end of the metal plate 9| is bent to form a loop 92 in which is positioned the locking rod 93. The locking rod 93 is U-shaped with the open end facing the tongue 1D and extending down either side of the gripping member 80 in the channels 82. The rod 93 is positioned behind the arms 83l and in their open position, as shown in Fig. 11, the arms 83 are free to move in and out as the tongue 10 is inserted and the projections 84 engage the notches of the serrated edges 1| and 12. When the desired adjustment has been obtained, the locking member is moved toward the loop 13. This movement causes the locking rod 93 to slide behind the arms 83 preventing any lateral movement of the arms 83 and thereby securely locking the projections 84 into the notched edges of the tongue 18. To release the tongue 18, the locking member 90 is moved in the opposite direction which causes the locking rod 93 to withdraw from behind the arms 83 allowing free lateral movement of the projections 84 which allows the tongue 18 to be withdrawn.

Although I have shown my device consisting of flat plates, it should be realized that it would function equally as well where the plate members are curved to adapt them to the shape of a wrist or some other curved object. While the invention has been described in detail with respect to a present preferred form which it may assume, it is not to be' limited to such details and form since many changes and modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest aspects. Hence, it is desired to cover any and all forms and modifications of the invention which may come within the range or scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

An adjustable clasp including a tongue, a gripping member and a locking member, said tongue equipped with serrated edges, said gripping member comprising a plate whose opposite edges are shaped to form channels, the inner walls of said channels comprising arms on which are positioned projections adapted to co-act with the serrated edges of said tongue, a slidably operated locking member equipped with a locking rod adapted to move in said channels, movement of said locking member in one direction causing said locking rod to hold said projections in locking engagement with the serrated edges of said tongue when said tongue is disposed between said projections.

HERMAN VIZNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Y Date 737,068 Briel Aug. 25, 1903 763,215 Smith June 21, 1904 

